Preschool Week of 10/8

It has been a busy, busy week here. I'm doing what I can to keep us occupied so that we don't miss Daddy too much. So far, so good. Here's a quick summary of our week:
Saturday, we went to a trial karate class, which Crumpet decided he does not want to join. In the afternoon, we went to a birthday party for one of the girls in his preschool class.
Sunday, we went to the zoo with several friends, and then had dinner with other friends. One of those friends spent the night at our house. It looks like she'll be moving into our house for a week or two because her husband is away for training and she's not used to being alone. That is a theme that will be repeated here frequently over the next few months- it looks like we are about to become Hotel Crumpet for young newlyweds not accustomed to the Navy life. We are happy to have the company and to help people adjust - this is not an easy life. Crumpet is excited to have new people to play Star Wars with... Poor, poor visitors don't know what they are getting into!!
Monday, Crumpet woke up vomiting. Again. Sigh, school is good for the social education that Crumpet so desperately needs, but I'm really tired of the repeated illnesses...
Thursday, we went to the beach, AND we saw the Black Pearl from the Pirates of the Caribbean, which they are filming here. Very cool! My pictures are awful because the light was wrong but here are a few:


As for school at home, that went well this week, too.
Reading: We've started the new Progressive Phonics section, which introduces blends. Yay, words with more than 3 letters at last! McRuffy has started introducing a lot of reading comprehension, and we started spelling this week. I was worried about Crumpet's reaction to spelling, but he whizzed through it.
Math:McRuffy introduced addition story problems. I was really excited to see these. I always loved them, but know so many people who panicked at the mere mention of 'word problem'. I'm glad to see them introduced so early so the horror can hopefully be avoided, and they will just be a fact of life for Crumpet.
History: We are reading Happy Little Family by Rebecca Caudill. This is sort of a shorter Little House on the Prairie, and it's a good introduction to what things were like in America long ago.
Geography: I have been planning to start doing units on the Spanish speaking countries of the world. I'm hoping Crumpet will see how many people speak Spanish and how useful this language could be for him. I've gathered materials and made plans for weeks, but never had the time to start. This week, we finally started with Spain. I'll do a post about it soon. Really. I hope.
Science: We finally got around to doing a couple of fun experiments I've seen around the blog world. We cleaned a penny with coke, and we made raisins dance in Sprite. The raisins were really fun. (I'm trying to get rid of the soda my husband left in the house!!)
Life Skills: We have started a chore routine similar to Jolanthe's at Homeschool Creations. It is working incredibly well so far. Crumpet knows which things he must do every day no matter what, and we've had no trouble getting the toys cleaned up, the teeth brushed, or the bed made in weeks. Most days, he does additional chores to earn money, and he has managed to save enough to buy himself several small toys. He's very proud, and I'm hoping that he will realize money isn't easy to come by. He definitely has stopped begging for everything he sees when we are in the store...
Have a great week! For more preschool posts, visit Homeschool Creations!